Ch. 8: We Follow God’s Laws
© God’s gift to us that allows us to make choices is free will.
© Sin is any thought, word, or act that we freely choose to commit even though we know that it is wrong. Sin hurts our friendship with God.
© Venial sins hurt our friendship with God.
© Mortal sins break our friendship with God.
© God always loves us and is ready to forgive us. Mercy is a word for God’s love and forgiveness.
Ch. 9: We Prepare for the Sacrament of Forgiveness
§ We receive and celebrate God’s forgiveness and peace in the Sacrament of Penance.
§ Reconciliation means coming back together again.
§ Our conscience is a gift from God that helps us to know what is right and what is wrong.
§ When we examine our conscience, the Holy Spirit helps us to think about and remember the choices we have made, including our thoughts, words, and actions.
§ Another word for having sorrow is contrition.
§ The Act of Contrition is a prayer of sorrow. We tell God we are sorry for our sins and tell God we will try not to sin again.
Short Answer:
Think about the story of the shepherd and his lost sheep. How does this story remind you of God’s love and forgiveness?
Just like the shepherd left his 99 sheep to look for the lost one, Jesus will always come looking for us when sin takes us away from him. He will always love and forgive us even when we sin.
Step 1: *Examine your conscience beforehand praying to realize any sins you have committed since
your last confession. This can be done as a group during a Penance Service or by yourself. An
Examination of Conscience is a time to look at our actions so we can identify sins or bad choices that we have made in all areas of our lives—our thoughts and words, what we have done, and what we have failed to do (to paraphrase the Confiteor).
Step 2: In the confessional.
The Priest and You: Do the Sign of the Cross, “In the name of the Father,
and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen.”
Step 3:
You: Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned, this is my first confession.
The next time you go, you say Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned, it has been ____weeks,
months or years since my last confession. (say how long it’s been since your last confession.)
Step 4: You: Share sins.
Step 5: The Priest: usually offers some counsel/advise. Say a few words about what the person just said.
Step 6: The Priest: assign penance. *
Step 7: You: Say the Act of Contrition. (*We will be saying this prayer as a group before students begin going to the priests.)
Step 8: The Priest: (raises his right hand) God the Father of mercies, through the death and resurrection of your son, you have reconciled the world to Yourself and sent the Holy Spirit among us for the forgiveness of sins. Through the ministry of the church, may God grant you pardon and peace. And I absolve you of your sins, in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. (signs a cross of the person in the air) Amen.
Step 9: You: Do the sign of the cross (as the priest does it)
In steps 3, 4, 5, & 6, you are talking to
our Lord through the priest.
Step 10: Go and do your penance.
Sometimes: At the very end of confession the priest says “Give thanks to the Lord for He is good” and
you respond, “His mercy endures forever.”